The Heroine of Hyrule
by ZaireLuxen
Summary: Link, a cursed girl from a poor farm befriends the Hyrulian princess. How will their stories unfold? Well, I have no clue either; I'm making it up as I go. I'm sure it'll be a great adventure for the both of us! Fem!Link/Zelda. There are far too few of these, so I took it upon myself to write one! Slight AU. I do not own The Legend Of Zelda.
1. The (Almost) Mute Protagonist

A young girl with straight blonde hair and striking blue eyes could be heard snoring slightly as she rested.

The young elf appeared to be around the age of seventeen. She wore a pair of light pants that were cut and frayed along the bottom, and a dark green night shirt that was too large, yet still form-fitting enough to where she looked good in it.

She dreamt a sweet scene, although the dream would be gone the moment she woke up. It was a peaceful night for the girl.  
That is until a bucket of ice water came crashing down on the poor girls head.

The sudden change in temperature shocked her so much it was as if she had stepped under a waterfall without realizing it (and she knew, for she had done this while showing off for her best (and only) friend).

And how do I know this? That unfortunate girl? She's me.

"Link!" A voice I knew all too well penetrated my confusion. "Get your lazy arse up before I beat some sense into you!"

I groaned, mentally cursing the woman who had adopted me (Sometimes I swear that woman only keeps me around for labor), and got up out of the pile of cloth I use as a bed.  
Without a word, which was not unusual for me, I began my chores around the farm.  
After a few excruciating hours of herding and feeding the family's Cuccos, I collapsed inside the barn on the edge of the ranch and simply closed my eyes and breathed in the fresh air.  
After a while, I heard a rapping on the barn door. My eyes snapped open wide, fearing it was the harsh gaze of my adoptive family as they come to hang me up by my toes for laying down on the job.  
My eyes settled on a pretty face that I had not been expecting.

"Is that any way to greet your princess, young Linkle?"

I grimaced. I hate my full name, and she knows it.  
"Well, _excuuuse_ me, princess, I was unaware I would be entertaining royalty this fine evening." I teased, a sly grin forming.  
She rolled her eyes at me with a small smile on her face, our usual banter bringing back the familiarity we loved so much, as the both of us rarely ever got the chance to simply be ourselves.  
I stood up slowly, groaning at my sore muscles and yawning. I made my way over to her and hugged her soundly, which she returned just as fiercely.  
"Where the hell have you been, Zel? I haven't had the chance to speak to anyone for an entire month!" I asked, slightly concerned.

You see, the reason why I'm so quiet around everyone is because I've had a curse put upon me. Ever since I can remember, I've not been able to utter a single syllable to anyone. Anyone, that is, except for Zelda, my best friend.  
As you could probably imagine, being practically mute isn't the most exciting thing in the world, and I'm not quite sure I'm completely sane as a result. I tend to act fairly aloof and distracted by my own thoughts most days.  
But when Zelda's here (or "Zel" for short. As I'm the only one in Hyrule who could get away with the nickname, I use it every chance I get.), I revert back into my usual self, like there has been absolutely nothing wrong for these past few years.  
She put her hands up in defense, "Sorry, sorry. I've been held up at the castle doing 'my duty to the kingdom as their heir and savior,' as Impa likes to put it." I chuckled. I know how the old woman can be, and how getting out of something she deems 'important' could be next to impossible.  
Zelda brought me out of my thoughts with a melodious giggle, something that caused my heart to ache. It seemed that not seeing my favorite person in the world for such a long period of time has had a larger effect on me than I realized.  
I looked to Zelda, wondering what what had brought on the wonderful sound, only to see her simply staring at me with a playful grin on her face.  
It seems as though smiles are contagious, as not long after, I've adopted a similar look.  
"What is it?" I wonder aloud. "What did you do?"  
"Oh, nothing. Just wondering how you'd react if I told you that I've gotten permission to stay here with you for a few days."

This news shocked me so much that I was unable to move for a few moments.

"A-are you sure?! This isn't a joke, right?" I spoke hastily, hope bubbling in my chest. We had been wishing upon every star in the sky, and praying to the goddesses each and every night, hoping to be able to spend time together that didn't involve one or both of us sneaking out at night. Now that I think about it, it's still daylight outside. That should have given me a clue.  
She nodded the affirmative, proving that this wasn't, in fact, a dream. I became so excited that I began dancing around like a fool, twirling and leaping around the interior of the barn, shouting my thanks to the goddesses and laughing the entire time.  
After a moment, I caught sight of my best friend doubled over, holding her stomach and laughing at my antics. I ran over and pulled her along with me, prompting her to join me in the fun.

She obliged, and soon we were twirling about, having the time of our lives. Hair was whipping around and my cap flew off; I could care less.

This was the only thing I had wanted to do for the past few excruciatingly long weeks.

Finally exhausted, we both collapsed on the ground, panting and looking up at the barn roof with big, goofy smiles on our faces. 

"This is the best." I exhaled.

She simply nodded and closed her eyes, both of us succumbing to our exhaustion, and falling into sleep.

A/n: This _will_ be fem link/fem Zelda, if you haven't already figured it out. If you don't like it, then don't read it. This is also my first fanfic, and I hope you enjoy. Also, neither The Legend Of Zelda, nor the art belong to me. All credit goes to their respective owners. Oh, and thanks to my editor, JESSisEPIC42 for being all around epic.


	2. A Thundering Plot

I awoke to the sound of rain pounding against the old tin roof of the barn.  
 _How long was I out?_ I attempted to sit up, only to find that I was unable to do so.  
There was a weight on my chest preventing me from moving. I glanced down to see the princess resting her head on my torso, snoring softly.  
I looked at her for a while, just taking in her peaceful appearance. Her usual pale face looked absolutely ethereal in the the dim light of the barn. She was always beautiful, princess or not.  
A crash of thunder snapped me out of my reverie, and Zel woke up with a startled cry. She began looking around frantically. I sat up and put my hand on her shoulder, hoping to calm her down. She jumped when my hand made contact with her skin and whipped her head around to look at me. The girls eyes were wide and frightened.  
 _Is she afraid of the storm? Why wasn't I aware of this?_  
I pulled her into a tight hug, hoping to comfort her. She struggled for a moment before relaxing into the embrace, and laid her head into the crook of my neck.  
I could hear soft whimpers coming from the girl in my arms, and right then and there, I promised myself to never let anything happen to her, not while I have the power to prevent it. _Nothing_ would harm this girl while I was by her side.  
I held her like that for a few more minutes while she shook, and never once lessened the grip I held upon my friend.  
Once her breathing returned to normal, I slowly pulled back and looked her in the eyes.  
"Are you alright?" I asked her, concern clear in my tone.  
She took a shaky breath."Yeah, i'm fine."  
"What was that all about, Zel?"  
"N-nothing, just- no, it's nothing." She was pulling away from me. "Zel, come on, I know you better than that. Don't do this, please? You know I'm here for you, just as you're here for me. Tell me what's bothering you."  
She looked at me for a few seconds before sighing weakly.  
"Okay. So, you know how my mother was assassinated when I was eleven?" I winced, knowing how close she was to her mother before she died. I nodded for her to continue.  
"Well, the night she was murdered, it was storming. I had snuck out of the castle to meet you by the waterfall, remember?" I did. It had been one of the best nights of my life, just goofing off with the best girl in the world.

Until she left. Then it had been hell in Hyrule.

"Well, when I had returned to the castle, the storm had already begun, both figuratively and literally." She said with a shake of her head. I could see the beginnings of tears in her eyes and immediately wanted to wrap her up in another embrace. I refrained, however. She needed to get this out.  
"By the time I returned to my chamber, the assassin had already infiltrated my mothers quarters." She had looked away from me and was now staring off at nothing with a distant look in her eyes, probably replaying that night in her mind.  
Thunder crashed outside, making her jump. She took a moment to collect herself, and I grabbed her waist and sat her on my lap, making sure she knew that someone was there for her.  
"Momma was dead when I walked in her room to tell her good night. If only I hadn't left, I might've been able to-" I could tell that her walls had broken down at this point, and she was on the verge of sobbing.  
I reached over and wiped away the tears streaming down her cheeks with my thumbs, holding her face in my hand in the process, forcing her to look me in the eyes.  
"Zelda, _please_ tell me you don't blame yourself for her death."  
She avoided my gaze once more. That was my answer.  
 _Dammit, Zel. Why didn't you tell me sooner?!_  
"Zelda. Look at me." I said with a soft, yet commanding tone.  
Hesitantly, she complied.  
"You mustn't blame yourself for that. You were only eleven, just a child." My voice broke on that last word, tears of my own were forming as well. "Nothing could have been done about it, I promise you." _Trust me. I know how it feels, to lose something you care about._  
She searched my eyes, and found the truth of my words in them.  
I pulled her close and held her until we once again fell prey to exhaustion, more from emotional than physical exertion this time around.  
I once again woke up before my princess, although I regretted it almost immediately.  
We had fallen asleep in a strange way; Zel was curled up in my lap, and I was sitting up against the wall of the barn.  
I softly hissed as I attempted to shift into a more comfortable position.  
 _Yep,_ I thought. _This is going to be fun._ I sighed as I looked out the window to the farm.  
 _Well, at least it's stopped raining, although it's not going to be fun when I go to tend to the animals today. Wait, what time is it?!_  
Fear shot through me as I realized that it was, indeed, much later in the day than I would normally be forced to be awake at. (Hell, the fact that it _wa_ s day meant that I was in a load of trouble when I got back!)  
For a moment, a part of me wondered why no-one had come looking for me yet, but I wrote it off as nothing.  
I needed to get back to my work as soon as possible, but there was a problem.  
A certain brown-haired beauty was preventing me from doing so.  
She looked so peaceful, it was impossible to disturb her. She reminded me of a child, something that I wouldn't have attributed to her before now.  
Zelda always had to be strong, she _was_ the princess of Hyrule, after all.  
But now, after last night, I think some of her burden may have been lifted. I waited another couple of minutes before lightly tapping her shoulder.  
"Hmm... What do you want..." She replied sleepily. I poked her again, and she swatted at my hand.  
I couldn't help from giggling at this display of adorableness.  
My laughter was enough to bring her out of her slumber so she could smack me in the arm.

"Ah, so my sleeping beauty finally wakes. I was wondering if I would need to give the princess a kiss to awaken thee, fair maiden." I teased, still chuckling. Zelda blushed and hit me again, harder this time.  
"Yeah, yeah." She got up off of me and stretched.  
I watched her for a few seconds, thinking she wouldn't know I was looking. "Like what you see, Link?"

I was wrong.

"I-uhh...I mean-" I stuttered, caught off guard at having been caught staring. She burst out laughing at my antics, and I soon joined her.  
After we recovered from the incident, I stood up and stretched as well, when, to my unending amusement, I caught my princess red in the face and avoiding my eyes.  
She had sneaked a peek as well.  
I suddenly remembered my chores (Again. Seriously, this girl is distracting), and informed Zelda of my impending doom.  
She agreed that we should probably head out and face the wrath together. 

Except, when we opened the barn doors, the sight we were greeted by stopped us dead in our tracks.

A/n: Ooh, a cliffhanger! What happens next? Find out next time on Dragon Ba- I mean, The Heroine of Hyrule! Also, I've figured out the plot! Yay for us! Oh, and thanks to my editor, JESSisEPIC42 for being all around epic. I don't own The Legend of Zelda, nor the art. All credit goes to their respective owners.


	3. Something is Wrong Here

The farm was wrecked. Planks of wood were scattered all around, as if thrown by some invisible force, the Cuccos were nowhere to be seen, and the house was in shambles.  
"What in Hyrule..." I began, my eyes wide and mouth agape."No. No no no no no." I was beginning to panic.  
Frantically , I began looking around me, trying to find proof that this was all just a bad dream. My breath became more panicked with each passing second, until I was seeing black spots at the corners of my vision.  
I barely registered a pair of hands clamp onto my shoulders.  
"Link? Link, calm down. You need to calm down."  
 _What happened?! Where are my adoptive parents? They must be around here somewhere, they have to be! This is my fault, if I had been where I was supposed to be, then-_  
I was cut off from my frenzied thoughts when a loud sound shattered my panic. Soon that sound turned to pain as I understood what had happened.

I had been slapped.

I looked to the source of my pain. Zelda was studying me with concern written clearly on her face.  
"Are you alright now?" She asked.  
"What? Y-yeah, of course. Why did you slap me?"  
"I think you were having a panic attack, Link. Are you sure you're okay?" I sat down to collect my thoughts and slow my still uneven breathing.  
"Yeah, I'm okay now. Thanks." She patted me on my back as I went to stand up.  
"Hey, aren't you forgetting something?" "Huh?" She gestured to her head.  
"Oh!" I ran back inside to grab my cap when I realised something.  
The barn was entirely unaffected. I grabbed my hat and returned back out to Zelda, who was inspecting a pile of rubble.  
"Hey, have you noticed that the barn doesn't seem to be affected at all? Everything else is completely destroyed."  
She looked back at the only building left standing in sight, and her eyes widened.  
The princess stood up abruptly and all but ran over to the barn.  
She began inspecting it with calculating eyes. I wanted to ask what she was thinking, however I didn't want to invoke her wrath for causing her concentration to break. _That could be disastrous._  
After a few minutes, she turned her attention back to me with a dazed look on her face.  
"Whats up? What did you figure out?"  
"Well, I think I understand at least a little about our situation now." She said, still looking at the barn, a contemplative look on her face.  
I gestured for her to go on.

"Well, I don't think we're in Hyrule anymore."

My brain was unable to comprehend those words. _Not in Hyrule? What? But, how?!_  
 _We were just in my hometown a few hours ago. How did we end up in a different place entirely?!_

After a moment, I realized that she had begun speaking again, and tuned my frazzled attention back to my princess, hoping for a logical explanation.  
"-n a place called Lorule. It's the exact opposite of Hyrule in every way."  
"So, wait. We're in an entirely different world? Well, how do we get back?! We can't just stay here forever! I can't, I just-" I sat down trying to comprehend the knowledge that I may never see home again.  
I could feel the constriction in my chest grow tighter with every thought.  
 _I need to calm down and think this through rationall_ y. _Nothing good will come from leaving Zel all alone while I'm off panicking._  
That's what brought me back to the present; the thought of Zel having to face this new world all alone because I was too scared to keep myself together long enough to think properly.  
I thought about the promise I made to myself to keep her safe, no matter what. I can't do that if i'm hyperventilating on the ground.  
At some point, Zelda had grabbed my hand and sat in front of me, attempting to calm me down. Her presence was immensely comforting.  
I took a deep breath and asked, "So, how do we go about getting back to Hyrule?"  
"I'm not exactly sure. The only reason I know anything about this place is because my mother used to tell me bedtime stories as a child."  
We sat there for a while pondering our situation until I suggested that we begin searching the rubble for anything that might be useful, as we had nothing of value on us when we were transported to this strange land.  
After about an hour of rummaging through old cloth and wood, we regrouped in the barn to sort through our findings.  
We came up with some clothes that we both could wear (we both wear approximately the same size), a cracked lantern that still has a fairly new wick in it, and what looked to be some faded cards covered in a small, brown satchel.  
We decided to call it a day, as it reached dusk (it had already been fairly dark, that was simply the atmosphere of the place, however, it became truly pitch black when night creeped along.  
I grabbed a tinderbox and some lighter fluid that had been kept in the barn, combined them with the lantern, and lit the wick inside.  
The princess and I sat next to each other against the wall of the barn with her head laid into the crook of my neck, a familiar position that brought us both a great deal of comfort.  
We sat in silence for a while, the weight of our situation bearing down upon us.  
"You're my best friend. You know that, right?" She asked, emotion lacing her voice.  
"Of course I do, just as you're mine." She looked relieved at my reply. "Why? Where did this come from, Zel?"  
"Oh, nowhere. I was just thinking about how many times you've been there for me over the years, and how there's no-one else I would ever wish to have the pleasure of befriending."  
I simply glanced at her with a grin and put my arm around her, pulling her close.

"Me too, Zel, me too." I said as I kissed the top of her head, both of us being lulled into sleep by the sense of security we each felt at having the other near.

A/n: Whew! Another chappy done. You can't tell me that even the hero(ine) of time wouldn't panic at least a little at being transported to an alternate dimension with no notice, especially when she hasn't done anything heroic yet. I hope you guys like reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. I don't own The Legend Of Zelda, nor do I own the art. All credit goes to their respective owners. Thanks to my editor JESSisEPIC42 for being epic.


	4. We're Not In Hyrule Anymore

I woke up in the barn, something not too unusual for me; I often came here to relax after my chores were done with.

Something that wasn't too usual, however, was the princess that was leaning against me, snoring softly. _Zel? What is she doing here?_

The events of the past twenty-four hours hit me like a sword hilt to the head. The sudden rush of memories made me light headed and nauseous.

 _We're truly not in Hyrule any longer?_ I groaned loudly.

Perhaps a little _to_ o loudly, as the girl using me as a pillow opened her eyes. She followed my example and groaned, covering her eyes with her arm.

"Good morning, beautiful. How was your night?" I asked with a small grin on my face.

She glared at me from under her arm. "Link, this is not the time to anger your princess."

I feigned shock. "But why? I would think this is the _best_ time to anger the lovely lady."

She growled at me, and I jumped up from my seat before she had the chance to take a swipe at me.

I held my hand out to her. "Come on, Zel. We have a big day ahead of us. We've got to get back to Hyrule."

She grabbed my hand and let me help her up. Reluctantly, I allowed my arm to fall back to my side so we could get to work.

 _Blegh. I need a bath._ I could feel the grime of yesterday's work still lingering on me, and I was sure Zelda could smell it.

"Hey, how about we find a place to bathe? If we have to meet people, I'd rather not be smelling as if I'd rolled in horse dung."

She looked at me like I was crazy. "You? Take a bath? _Willingly?!_ Alright, who are you and what have you done to my Link!" _My Link, huh?_

"Hey! I do too take baths! Get back here, princess!" I called as she ran just out of my reach. I took one step forward, she took two steps back. _Oh, it is on._

She turned and ran, jumping over the pile of clothes we salvaged yesterday. _Ooh, is the princess feeling rebellious today?_

It wasn't long until we were both running, taunting and chasing each other around like we used to do when we were little kids.

Just as I was almost able to grab her, she knocked over a pile of tools to block my path, an old hunting spear I had made when I was little almost split my head in two. _So, she wants to play dirty, huh? We'll see about that._

As Zelda was passing the barn doors, I climbed up to the hayloft ( A/N: The area in the upper portion of the barn. Where the hay is.) and waited.

She had finally realized that I hadn't been following her, and stopped just below where I was hiding.

I whistled, gaining her attention, and dropped from the area above her.

Unfortunately, I misjudged my position.

I landed just in front of her, which would've been fine if I had the acrobatic skills of a monkey. As this was not the case, however, I stumbled into Zelda.

We began falling, and I threw all of my weight to the side, shifting us so that I would land on the bottom to prevent from crushing her.

This landing resulted in a position that we had not yet been in, neither with each other, nor anyone else.

We were kissing.

We sat frozen, staring at each other, lips touching and bodies pressed close.

It was shocking. _I'm_ kissing _the princess! No, I'm kissing Zel!_

Even though it had been a complete accident, I never wanted this moment to end.

I just couldn't comprehend how such a simple action could feel so good.

And just then, the spell was broken.

Zelda pulled back and looked at me, lips slightly parted, cheeks flushed, and her eyebrows furrowed. She seemed almost scared as she searched my eyes.

She looked further down to my lips, and I followed her gaze. I found that at some point, my hand had raised to my face, touching the ghost of her lips.

"I-uhhh..." I tried to speak, but no words formed. My brain had shut down.

"You- I'm sorry." She spoke in a strange, hurried tone, then stood up and quickly walked out of the barn.

 _Way to go genius, you may have just ruined the only friendship you'll ever have._

"Arggh, why do you have to be so damn _stupid?!_ Why can't you just act normal around her?" I berated myself as I sat up and held my hands to my face.

After a moment, I realized that I needed to go find Zel and apologize for my actions, even if they were accidental.

I groaned once again and walked out of the barn.

Only to be greeted by what looked liked a bunch of orange pig-creatures looming about an unconscious princess.

 _Zelda! I have to get to her!_ I hid behind the barn doors, eternally grateful that the monsters hadn't seen me yet.

I needed a weapon. Glancing around the barn, there was nothing that that immediately caught my attention.

I began rummaging through a pile of old tools that hadn't been used in years. Most of which were falling apart at the base, but I found a shovel that had some rust on it, but all-in-all looked to be in okay condition. I tested it on the wall to the right of me.

The blade broke into three pieces. _Damn, must've rusted through._ I dropped the useless stick and whipped my head around to look for something more durable, frantic to get back to my friend.

A flash of silver caught the edge of my vision, and I stumbled attempting to get to it. I realized that it was the spear that Zelda had almost hit me with when we were goofing off earlier. I picked it up and looked it over. The leather grip had long since fallen off and the tip was chipped, but other than that, it seemed to be enough to defend myself with.

I held on tightly to my new found weapon and quickly made my way back over to the doors. It had been about a minute since I left to find a weapon, and I sincerely hoped that Zelda was alright. I steeled myself, then cautiously walked out to meet my strange foes.

AN/ Hey, guys. sorry for the long wait. I really have no other excuse but for laziness, but I finally got a laptop for Christmas, so I won't have to type up the chapters on my phone anymore. Alright, see ya.


	5. Strange New World

There were six of them in total; two shield men and four with spears. The two nearest to the barn noticed my presence and started snorting and squealing. _I don't want them alerting the others. I don't think I could handle six all at once._

I ran towards the one off to my left holding the spear, and almost got impaled for my efforts. "Gah!" _Goddesses, give me strength._ I thought wearily.

I was on the defensive for what felt like an eternity(dodge, parry, dodge, duck), until a pattern developed in it's movements.

Every Time the creature lunged at me, it left the left side of it's torso open for attacks. _Wait for it, come on... there!_

My foe lunged, and just as I thought, left the spot vulnerable. I side stepped and stabbed with my weapon. _Yes!_ The pig creature let out a pained squeal as the dull steel hit its mark. It dropped it's spear and fell to the ground.

I could hear the other one closing in, almost directly behind me now. I pulled my spear out and turned to face it, ready to do the same as last time.

Or, at least that was the plan. My weapon was stuck in the previously impaled, and it didn't seem to want to let go. _No! Come on..._ I dropped my spear and turned to face the one at my back. It was closer than I expected.

I fell back trying to avoid the spear coming towards my breast. While I was able to avoid the full brunt of the attack, it still grazed me across the left shoulder. _Gah, dammit..._ I brought my right hand up to hold my new wound and scrambled back with my free hand, dodging and rolling every few seconds.

For every foot I gained, the orange aggressor gained two more, jabbing at the ground with the about-to-be-murder-weapon.

My hand landed on a sharp rock, slicing my palm and causing me to stumble. _Arrgh._ I growled. I knew there was no way that I'd be able to dodge this one. I grabbed the stone and threw it at my aggressors face, hoping to delay the attack.

This caused enough of a distraction to where I could kick the pig's leg out from under it. Much like the last one, it went down squealing before I took it's spear and impaled it.

I stumbled to my feet, cradling my wounds. I grabbed the spear used last, making sure that it came out completely _before_ I had to fight this time. Glancing slightly to my right, the other two spearmen and the ones with the shields were advancing, finally noticing that two of their men were down. I sighed heavily, I was already exhausted and wounded. I wasn't even halfway through.

I decided that it was now or never, and ran in with a cry of determination. _I have to finish this fast. I won't make it otherwise._

I went after one of the shield men, swiping at its head before he could react. One down. The one with the spear to my left took a swing at me. _Sidestep. Lunge. Strike._ I was falling into a groove. I forgot the pain in my shoulder and hand, the strangely colored blood staining my clothes, and I kept pushing. Zelda was in danger, and I couldn't leave her in this world all alone.

 _Jump. Sweep. Duck. Dodge. Stab_. Two more down. As I was finishing off the last one, my spear once again became stuck in my downed foe's body. This broke my trance and I began to panic. The creature saw its chance and struck at me. I fell back and hit my head on something hard, my vision almost immediately growing dark. My last thoughts before completely blacking-out consisted of how completely and utterly lame it would be to die by an overgrown piece of pork.

When I came to (which was a good thing in itself, as it meant that I was alive), the pig was nowhere in sight. I groaned and attempted to stand, but immediately regretted that decision. My vision once again grew dark and I wanted to throw up. I shut my eyes tight and sat still while trying to stay conscious, until I heard a scream.

My eyes snapped open, head protesting the entire way. I looked to where I heard the sound, and was greeted by my princess fighting the last foe. I watched for a moment in awe, she was fighting unarmed, but she was holding her own. _She's alive!_ I thought, a small smile coming to my face. But my countenance immediately fell as I watched her trip over one of the already fallen creatures. She tripped over one of the first two that I felled. "Aagh! Dammit!" She cursed.

"Zelda!" _Damn... I have to get it away from her_ now. _But how?_ Now, don't fault me _too_ much for my next move , as I _was_ recovering from a hard blow to the head. I grabbed a rock, not unlike the one that pierced my hand, and I threw it as hard as I could at the thing assaulting my best friend, hoping to at least distract it long enough for her to get away. Unfortunately, with a head that was spinning so badly I could barely see straight and an injured throwing arm, the effect was less than desirable. The offending hunk of rock landed two feet in front of the two locked in combat

The creature looked at me as if I were an idiot. After Zelda realized that she wasn't dead, she did as well.

"Umm, hey." I said weakly, halfheartedly waving with my uninjured hand.

The first to recover was my princess. The distraction allowed for enough time to sweep the still confused beast's stubby legs and drive a wayward pike through it's heart.

Zelda slowly stood up, breathing heavily and staring down at her assailant for a moment before twirling on the spot.

"Link!" Zelda exclaimed, rushing over to my side as the world began to swim before my eyes. I blinked and everything but the girl rushing towards me fell away, until that too vanished from my sight.

AN/ Alright, so now that I'm uploading regularly again, I've decided to upload a new chapter every Tuesday and Friday. That should allow me enough time to keep up with school and write. Thanks for reading!


	6. Princess Problems

I awoke to the sound of muttering and shuffling off to my right, and a blinding headache rending me almost incapable of thought. I sat with my eyes closed for a short while, trying to kill the pain, and then looked off to the side for the source of the sound. I was greeted with the sight of my princess in the dim light of the barn. She looked to be scouring through a pile of old clothes I had stashed in a dry barrel about a year ago. I had to keep a reserve of dry clothes so that when I snuck out in the early morning rain to romp in the fields free of work, I'd be able to sneak back in without dragging mud and water throughout the house. It kept my adoptive parents from scolding me while I sat back and sulked silently, as always.

I sat up, my muscles protesting all the way. It would be a while before I was able to move properly again. I looked back over at the girl still muttering about something. It seemed that she didn't know I was awake yet, and a devious smile came easily to my face.

As quietly as I could(which mind you, was not easy for an injured girl), I stood up and tiptoed over, wincing slightly.

I hugged her from behind, careful to avoid a small gash on her right side. She jumped and whipped her head to the side so fast I was afraid she would hurt herself. When she realized it was only me, she gave out a long sigh and half-heartedly glared at me. I only smiled back and kept my hold on her, happy just to have her by my side.

"Link. good to see you up. How are you doing? Is your head alright?" she asked. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just got a massive headache and sore all over, but it could've been a lot worse," I said with a dismissive wave of my hand. She nodded with a grim look on her face. "But what about you? I didn't get the chance to make sure you were okay after those… _things_ attacked." She sighed and turned around in my arms, looking slightly off to the side. "Just a few scratches. Nothing to be concerned over," she said, although I could tell that something was bothering her.

She went back to looking through the remaining clothes with a shake of her head. She looked like she didn't want to talk about whatever was bothering her, so I let it slide for now.

I put my head on her shoulder, peering over at her hands. "Alright then. Whatcha doin, girly?" A small twitch at the corner of her lips told me that I wasn't rushing in too fast after yesterday. Neither of us had forgotten the events from before, but she didn't seem to be bothered by it at the moment. _Good, maybe I can win her back over with my feminine wiles. Or something like that._

I was shaken out of my thoughts when I heard her voice. "I'm attempting to put together some more appropriate clothes for the two of us, seeing as I'm still dressed like royalty, and you, my fair lady, have bled all over your tunic."

I glanced down and realized that she was right. Half of my forest green shirt, along with my off-white under shirt was completely ruined by a large spot of dried blood. "Well Damn, there goes my favorite shirt..." I mumbled. Zelda heard me, apparently, because she began giggling, slapping a hand over her mouth to prevent the noise from escaping. _That's adorable, the way her eyes light up and her cheeks darken. I think I'll play with her a bit._

"Is that the only thing you're worried about? The loss of your favorite shirt? You could've _died_!" She said in a jokingly exasperated manner.

"Well, since the shirt is so dirty, why don't I just take it off now? I don't want to have to wear it for much longer anyway. While I'm at it, my pants are quite dirty too. Might as well just strip down to my underwear." I said, still holding on to her torso tightly.

I could feel her stiffen at my words. I looked without turning my head at her face, and saw that her mouth was hanging slightly open, and she had a glazed over look on her face, as if imagining what my words described.

I stared at her in awe, not expecting this reaction whatsoever. After another few moments of this, she snapped out of her thoughts, her cheeks a bright red that looked decidedly good on her. _I'll have to do that more often._ I thought with glee. It was simply too much fun to mess with my princess like this.

I removed my arms from her waist (I swear I heard a small whimper when I did), and began pulling my tunic off, making sure to keep my undershirt on, slowly so as to not injure myself further, although I'm sure the princess to whom I was still pressed firmly against, enjoyed the little show.

Once my shirt was fully off, I leaned forward and whispered "Hey, do you think you could grab me another shirt to wear?" Directly into her ear whilst having her side with my right hand and dropping my tunic in front of her still form. Zelda, who hadn't moved an inch the entire time, shivered at my touch and my breath against her sensitive ear.

She quickly obliged, grabbing for the shirt off to her left and shoving it behind her with all the force of an embarrassed princess.

I couldn't keep up the act any longer, and lost it. Giggles erupted from my throat and eventually evolved into a full blown belly laugh that had me aching at my sides and my head pounding in my ears once more.

Zel went even more rigid, probably thinking that I was making fun of her _,_ which was not the case at all. I knew I needed to explain before she actually got mad, and managed to pull myself together long enough to do such a thing.

"H-Hey," I chuckled. "You know you can look at me, I'm not going to bite you or anything."

Her blush grew an even harsher shade of red at this statement, and I could feel the heat coming to my face as well by now. She was still as rigid as a rock, so I gently took her face in my hands and turned her head toward me.

She combated this by shutting her eyes tight. I sighed. _Is she really that adamant about this? Alright, well, I suppose it's time to stop the torture._

"Zel." I said in the softest tone I could manage. "Come on, open your eyes. Please? For me?"

She furrowed her brows, as if thinking. I got up and repositioned us so that we were facing each other. I placed my injured hand to her cheek, and the other took her hand that lay clenched by her side. "Please?"

She opened one eye, just a crack before opening them both fully. She saw that I still had a shirt on and looked back to my face. "See, shirt's still on, I'm not bleeding to death, everything's okay, right?" I said with what I had hoped was a comforting smile.

I didn't get the affirmative nod that I was hoping for. Instead, her eyes grew wet, and tears began rolling down her face.

Alarmed, I pulled her into a hug, hoping to soothe her nerves. This only served to make her cry harder, this time balling up my shirt in her hands. _Dammit, what's wrong, Zel?!_

I let her cry for a few minutes, waiting until she had called down enough to talk, then gently pushed her away so that I could see her face. It was red and her eyes were swollen. She was still sniffling when I asked her, "Zel? Come on, what's wrong? Did I do something wrong? I'll stop, if you want. Wait, is it because of the kiss yesterday? I'm sorry, it was an accident, and I-"

She cut me off as I started my panicked rambling. "No, no, you idiot," She said with a small chuckle and a sniff. With each sentence, she grew louder and more frustrated. "It's because the full brunt of our situation hit me last night. We're stranded in another realm entirely, completely cut off from Hyrule. We've only been here for two days and we've already almost been killed by strange creatures. It's because we're stuck here. It's because I'm the _princess_ for goddesses' sakes, and I'm in another realm _entirely,_ and even _if_ we get back I'd never get to live the way _I_ wanted, because I'm their princess, and-"

" _Zelda."_ She looked surprised to hear my voice, almost as if she had forgotten that I was there. A blush rose to her face faster than I thought possible, and she looked away from me in shame.

 _Has she been harboring these feelings for long? Why didn't I notice? Damn her princess training. Being taught your whole life to be able to hide your true thoughts and feelings in front of others might be good in a political situation, but it's never good for personal sanity._

"Hey, princess." I said in a small voice. She looked at me out of the corner of her eye. "Why didn't you talk to me? You know I'm always here to lend an ear whenever you need it. I enjoy your company immensely, and would like to help in any way possible. So, why would you keep this to bubbled up inside?" She mumbled something under her breath that I couldn't make out. I motioned to her that I was unable to hear. She sighed and repeated it, looking me dead in the eyes and speaking clearly.

"...Because you're part of the problem."

AN/ Hey guys. Hope you all are liking the story so far; let me know what you think if you want. I won't be able to update until around five most days, so be looking for updates.


	7. A Long Forgotten Tale

"...Because you're part of the problem," She said, looking me directly in the eye, her voice as certain as I'd ever heard it.

 _Me? What do I have to do with anything?_ "What do you mean I'm part of the problem? What problem?" I asked, feeling utterly confused as to my role in her sorrow.

She averted her eyes once more, her face taking on a more pain filled expression. She looked as if she were about to say something, then her face hardened in determination and she shifted her eyes back to mine.

"You are aware how I am the only one you can speak to? That there is a 'curse' placed upon you?" She asked. I found this question rather ridiculous, as we've had many a conversation about this before, and she knew full well that she was the only one I could verbally interact with.

"Well, yeah. Of course. But, what does this have to do with-"

"Just, trust me, okay?" She cut me off, slightly annoyed. "You know I do," I said, taken aback.

I couldn't help but notice the way she bit her lip in a very un-princess like manner when she was thinking about something. It was such a small detail that in that moment, I thought I might be the only person to know about the modest little movement, as even she seemed unaware of her actions.

I snapped my head back up to her eyes when I realized that I was staring, a light dusting of pink covering my cheeks. "So, my curse?" I asked when I noticed she seemed to be lost in her own thoughts.

She moved her eyes back to mine, searching them for a moment before nodding with certainty. "It's not a curse, Link. It's the Goddesses' will," She said, studying my reaction.

 _Wh-What?!_ I thought, my eyes widening in shock. "How-How could you even _think_ that this is _any_ sort of blessing from the Goddesses?! It's made my life a living hell, and I'm not so sure that I'm completely sane as a result." I retorted vehemently. I had spent most of my life in complete silence as a result of this so-called _blessing,_ and the only reprieve I've had has been from the girl in front of me, who is currently telling me otherwise.

"Link, calm down and listen for a second. I'm not saying that it's been easy for you, but it's true." She sighed and made her way over to the barn wall that I was leaning against not too long ago and sat down against it, then motioned for me to do the same. I stared at her for a moment before shaking my head and complying. Apparently this was going to take a while. These past few days have been too much. As boring as it was, all I wanted was to get back to my normal duties as a farm hand.

I sat down with a pained sigh as my injuries were pulled in awkward directions. "You remember the stories my mother used to tell us when we were little? And our favorite one, what did she call it… 'The Hero of Time'?" She prompted with a wistful smile on her face.

"Yeah, of course. We used to act out the scenes and battles in the forest and the castle gardens. They were special to us because we could relate so well with the characters; the mute and the princess. Those were some of the best days of my life, just running around playing with my best friend," I shot a small smile in her direction, and she gave a small chuckle in response.

"Well, those stories weren't just fairy tales. They're real, not made up like we were led to believe. Instead, they were legends passed down through the royal family; history lost to time, made out to be children's stories instead. But the royal family still knows the truth; they alone remember. That's why every first born girl in the royal family is named Zelda; to honor Zelda I, who was put under a sleeping curse whilst protecting her kingdom from those who would bring it ruin. There has always been a mute and a princess. Always a Link and a Zelda to combat the evil forces in the world." She finished, looking to my face for a response.

I sat gaping, trying to process the information that got dumped on my lap like a sack of bricks. After a moment of floundering for words fruitlessly, I finally gave up, closed my eyes and leaned back against the wall. We sat in silence for what felt like hours before I broke the silence.

"How do you know all of this?" I asked quietly. "I myself only found out a little over three months ago, on my birthday. It's tradition to pass on the legacy when one of the chosen turns seventeen, according to Impa." She replied morosely, looking down at her lap. "So _that's_ why I hadn't seen you in so long," I guessed. "You were dealing with all of… well, _this._ " I gestured with my uninjured hand.

"Yeah. And no one had thought to inform _you_ of any of this because even though you're two months older than me, you don't have ties to the crown, and this is a very closely guarded secret. They didn't deem you _worthy_ of knowing something like being chosen to protect the kingdom from darkness, but what do I know. I'm just the _princess_ ," She huffed, clearly annoyed. "I'm technically committing treason for giving away secrets of the crown, but you deserve to know, after all, you and I share a fate."

Another long silence befell us both before there was a low rumbling off to my left. I looked towards my princess, who bore a sheepish look and a blush across her fair features. I burst out laughing at the sudden change of atmosphere, and she soon followed. "I-I guess we'd better grab something to eat, huh princess? I think I've got some dried meat and water in one of our hiding spot still." I laughed. _Now that I think about it, I'm starved. I guess in all this excitement I just forgot about food._ "Yes, I suppose we should find some sustenance for now," She reluctantly replied, shyly looking away in slight embarrassment. "We can continue this conversation later, when you've processed this all a bit better."

AN/ Hey guys! This chapter begins to explain some of what's been going on in this inadvertent adventure. I'll explain more at a later date, I promise, but next chapter's gonna be plot free. Just a bit of fluff I thought needed to be there. Oh, well. That's what happens when you go into a story blind; it just runs all over the place without your permission. Kind of like a little kid in a toy store... anyway. I noticed that I haven't been putting up disclaimers, so here:

DISCLAIMER: You see this story? I own this. This keyboard? I own this as well. Even this bag of deliciously crispy chips are mine. All your Zelda are _not_ belong to me however. There. That's better.

So, I've been meaning to do this for a while now, but it keeps slipping my mind when I go to publish these. Thanks to Cyndrodos for being awesome and reviewing on my story. If you enjoy this story, then go ahead and thank them for getting me back into writing. Just a few words inspired me to get back to it and give you more content. They've been super awesome and deserve credit for it. So thanks, and I hope that I get other reviews in the future; I do enjoy reading them.

And another thing(I know, this AN is _super_ long today. Guess I'm just in a talkative mood. Also, it's snowing outside! First snow this winter!), I'm going to start recommending stories for y'all to read. They won't always be TLOZ, in fact, most of them won't be. Just whatever I feel like reading is going to be what I recommend.

The first one is called Yule Ball Panic by Philosophize. It's a short, four chapter Harry Potter fic, shipping Fem! Harry/Hermione. It has two super long sequels that the author just recently finished, and those stories are actually where I borrowed(Stole. Totally and completely stole.) the idea to do these recommendations. It's a really great read, even if you don't ship those two. I'd definitely give it a shot if you're interested.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, guys! See you next Tuesday!


	8. My Smiling Princess

As it turned out, there was just enough food and water in the secret caddy to keep us from going hungry for the moment. We ate in silence, pondering all that we had learned in the last two days, and what might come next in this strange, dark world.

Eventually, we finished our meager rations and, although we both know we needed to speak about the fate awaiting the two of us, neither one of us wanted to talk about something so far out of our reach of control. So we sat in the silence, our thoughts weighing heavily upon the atmosphere of the barn.

I looked over to Zelda, wondering how she was handling everything now that I knew at least some of the burden that weighed upon her. _She looks tired._ I thought. _When was the last time she didn't have to worry about royal duties or her image? She needs to have some fun before she loses it completely._

My decision made, I stood up from the wall and stretched my arms out behind my head. Looking over toward my princess revealed her still deep in thought, completely ignoring my movements as I made my way over to stand in front of her. Doing my best impression of a courtly noble, I pretended to muse aloud.

"Ah, but whom is this fair maiden that I see?" My voice startled her out of her thoughts, and she gave me a strange look as if asking _Link, you idiot, what are you doing now?_

"Ne'er have I seen such a beauty in all these lands." I continued. She still bore a confused look upon her face, but a slight blush was creeping onto her cheeks now. "I _must_ ask her name, for this is one rose that I shan't pass by." I continued my monologue, building up the character as I went. "Good morrow, my Lady. What, pray tell, is thine name, dear rose?" I prompted, wincing inwardly at my mistakes. It had been many years since we had used the speech of old; back when we would slay giants in the garden, and I was sure that I was mucking it up quite badly. _Please play along…._

It took her a moment to regain her composition, then,"Why, thank you, kind lady. I am princess Zelda of Hyrule. And what, might I ask, is the name of the beautiful lady before me?" _Thank the goddesses._ "I am

Linkle, just a humble farm girl on the outskirts of the kingdom. Forgive me princess, I do not wish to intrude upon thine precious time. It has been a pleasure speaking with you, but surely you have better things to be doing than conversing with some commoner such as myself," I said with a resigned tone.

She looked _actually_ alarmed as I finished speaking. "No! I-I mean, no. It's quite alright. You've no need to leave unless _you_ wish to- which is probably why you _are_ -" " _Princess."_ She stopped her rambling and glanced at me. _Damn. She slipped back into basic speech. Even when we were little, she never failed to stay in character; everything must really be getting to her._

I knelt in front of her and looked her in the eyes. "Nothing would please me more than if I was to stay by your side." I assured with my normal tone of voice. _She needs to know that I mean this; that it isn't a game._

She held my gaze for a long moment before giving an embarrassed huff and a small smile. "Now then, if you wish me to accompany you this evening, I would like nothing better than to spend time with a lovely lady such as yourself. Would thou'st do me the gracious favor of humbling me with a dance, splendid Highness?" I asked, bowing and reaching out my hand in offering. She stared at me incredulously for a moment before asking, "How can you always recover from these types of things without even so much as _blinking_ in most cases?"

I adopted a confused look before replying, "Recover? There is nothing to recover _from,_ fair maiden! No faux pas, no blunder; I am sure I don't understand what you mean, princess." Still holding my hand outstretched, I flashed her a cheeky smirk and a wink before reverting to my original countenance.

Zelda looks between my face and hand for a few moments before giving a playful smile of her own and grabbing my hand. Before I could help her up to continue my plans however, the upward turn of her lips grew more devious, and she yanked me forward. I yelped and landed disoriented in her lap, my view suddenly of the ceiling instead of a beautiful princess like it should have been.

The both of us then lay in a heap, one of us laughing her royal butt off, and the other pretending to be grumpy about the unexpected(although it should have been quite obvious, given Zelda's been known to pull things like that over the years) outcome. My expression softened after a few seconds when I focused on her still-laughing form. _My princess is smiling again. That's all I needed to see._ I stood back up and regarded her with soft eyes.

"Now then my lady, how about that dance?"

AN/ Nothing much to say today. Hope you enjoyed! The recommended story for today is called Underneath it All by fembuck. I am a HUGE xmen fan; I grew up with the comics and cartoons and the psychics were always my favorites, so a Jean/Emma story was a great pairing for me and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.


	9. When Divine Beings Get Bored

As the evening passed by, so did the hours of spinning and twirling in each other's arms, laughing and teasing one another into the late night. The minutes seemed to pass by like small ripples in time, ever flowing, yet never moving past a trickle. Our problems faded away and the figmental score took over; dark surroundings providing the unwanted background noise in our whimsical little world. We were vaguely aware of the ink-like darkness setting upon the already murky sky and the whispers at the back of our minds; an incessant reminder that we should have been working to find a way out of the somber realm we found ourselves in.

Eventually, the fatigue that had been wearing down upon us for a while now, both mentally and physically, got the best of us and we reluctantly settled down for the night. With the princess' head resting on my leg as we ready ourselves as best we can for the day ahead of us. We lied there for a while, neither one of us wanting to fall asleep and face the responsibility of tomorrow.

"Hey, Link," a soft voice interrupted my thoughts about the day and what was to come. "What's up, princess?" I replied, my voice seeming lonely against the silent night. "Something has been bothering me for some time now. Why do you hang around?" She tilted her head for a moment, then shook it. "No, Why do you allow _me_ to be around? I bring nothing but trouble, and problems follow me at every turn; nothing is easy with me around. What would possess you to stick by someone like that?"

I stared at her for a long moment, contemplating the best way to respond to that. _It's like she's got another insecurity at every turn. Although, being the future ruler of an entire kingdom_ must _be exhausting for one's mind. If I were in her position, I'd have run away years ago. I hate that she has to go through all of that pressure. I just wish she would have shared all of this with me sooner. Maybe then I could have eased some of her burdens without her having such a hard time with her own mind._

"Zel, why do you think I'd simply _allow_ you to be around me?" I asked softly. "This isn't a one-way relationship, princess. You're my friend. What other reason do I need?" I finally answered. I wasn't used to this kind of behavior. I wasn't really sure how to handle something like this. Before we came here, Zelda was always the one to bring _me_ up when I got down about something, usually my lack of the ability to speak with anyone.

"That's not a reason, Link. Not really." She turned and buried her head into my collar, hiding her face from view. I'd never admit it, but I secretly loved when she did that. It sent shivers up my spine, and gave my pale cheeks an easily distinguishable red dusting.

"You're not very perceptive, are you? I don't know how you've managed to go this long without noticing, but I absolutely _love_ being around you. You're breathtakingly beautiful. You can outmatch almost _anyone_ in a court setting and not even break a sweat. You'd do absolutely anything to protect your kingdom. Above all of that though, is your ability to love almost unconditionally. No matter the flaw, you always see past it. Whether it be my _exceedingly_ stubborn self, unruly children, damned entitled nobles, or disgusting suitors from all around the kingdom(seriously, whether it be character or visage, they _always_ had something unworthy about them), you manage to amaze me still. I love that about you, and I wish that you could see it too."

Zelda remained with her head in the crook of my neck for the rest of the night, neither looking up nor acknowledging my response. I sighed and shifted my body into a more comfortable position before I closed my eyes to the emotionally draining day.

A loud crash in my ears woke me up abruptly. As I Jolted forward, I felt a weight slip off of my lap. Looking down revealed a pretty pissed princess who - until just a few seconds ago - was sleeping soundly using me as a pillow.

She glared at me with tired eyes. "Oh, come on! I was finally able to get comfortable!" I shrugged sheepishly, rubbing the back of my stiff neck. _Note to self: sleeping while sitting up is a definite no-go_. "Sorry, I uh-" There was a loud groaning sound that seemed to come from all around us. Our eyes widened and we were now fully awake as we launched into the task of searching frantically for the source of the unwelcome noise. There was no immediate threat; no weird pig-things, angry adults, or even an angry mob of Cucoo's, Just the dark and empty barn that we had used as our shelter for the past few nights.

Something was _definitely_ wrong however, as there was a rather large amount of water pouring through the patchy roof of the barn and the entire construct seemed to only be held together by some unseen force.

"Gah- _Shit!"_ I heard the girl next to me curse vehemently. Rushing to our feet, we began frantically searching around the barn for anything that might help in the situation we had been thrust into.

"Come _on,_ Linkle! We have to do _something!_ " She yelled at me over the increasingly resounding wind. "That's not my name!" I yelled back on impulse, my mind currently a mile away.

This was _not_ natural. The rain punched a hole in the roof just off to our side and began pouring on us like needles into our skin, as if it _hadn't_ been almost completely silent a few minutes ago. It was like the storm had come from nowhere _._ There wasn't a cloud in the sky the day before, and now it was like the Goddesses themselves decided "Oh, you know what would be fun? A flood! We haven't had one of those in ages! Now, where should it occur… Oh! I know! What about over those two sleeping girls down there? They haven't had _nearly_ enough mental trauma lately!" _Damn crazy ladies with too much power and too little to do..._

As if they had heard me, a resounding _Crack!_ Came from above as one of the rafters splintered and fell. Right towards me. _Really? More?_ I thought as I glanced towards the girl panicking off to my left; she saw exactly what was happening, and while I resigned myself to further brain trauma, she - like the noble idiot she was - ran towards me as fast as she could. My eyes widened for what felt like the tenth time in the two minutes I had been awake.

Before I could stop her, she pushed me out of the way of the falling remnants of our past playground. Hitting the hard floor, I quickly turned and watched, gaping as she took the hit for me, then slumped to the ground like a doll.

"NO! _Nonononono,"_ I repeated as I crawled towards my fallen friend. Pushing the large piece of wood off of her back where it landed, I gently took her head in my hands and cradled it as large tears mixed with the fallen rain slid slowly down my cheeks.

"Dammit. _I'm_ the stupid one, when did you steal my job, huh, Zel? I'm supposed to save _you,_ not the other way around." I choked out, my fingers playing with a strand of stray hair that had gotten in her face. "That's the way it's always, been, huh? So _why_?!"

AN/ So... That happened. I didn't plan that at all. Oh, well. I suppose we'll roll with it. Recommended fic is Alone, Together by Failte200. This is a Kim Possible fic. _No_ idea how I got here. I ran out of stuff to read in my other fandoms (I have no life) and ended up at this absolutely amazing story about a cartoon that I used to watch when I was like, ten or something. It's seriously great, and even if you don't remember much about the show like I did, It's a great read. Also, Tuesdays fic _might_ end up being Wednesdays fic, not sure yet. I'm swamped with homework and not sure if i'll have time to write. Here's to hoping!


	10. Alone With My Thoughts

The next hour of my life was a living hell. There wasn't anything I could do to help Zelda with the storm raging on around us, as if it hadn't a care in the world. Everything was a blur after she was injured. _Injured while protecting my stupid self._ I couldn't help the thought from entering my head like a fly that wouldn't go away. _Not the time._

I had managed to drag us to one of the more stable areas in the building that was rapidly collapsing down on our heads. There was nothing I could do except to pray and hope that this nightmare ended soon. I cradled my savior's head in my lap once more, and rocked back and forth with tears rolling steadily down my cheeks.

I didn't know what to do. There was nothing I _could_ do until the storm had passed and we could get someplace dry enough to think. The wind howled incessantly in my ears and I huddled closer to my princess, both fighting off the cold and simply wanting to be as close as possible to her.

Looking down at my princesses crumpled form, I took in her features as well as I could in what little light was brought forth by the lightning that was strewn intermittently through the night. The rain had plastered her hair to her face, obscuring most of the right side of her head. Brushing my hand gently over skin so pale it scared me, I carefully removed the stray strands and sat back slightly with a sob when my hand came away a dark, watery crimson. Watching in growing horror as her blood ran off of my fingers into the soaked soil beneath us, my mind went blank as I realised that I might actually lose my best friend this night.

Snapping out of my dull state of consciousness, I carefully maneuvered her body against me so that she'd be able to rest on a supported plane without me holding onto her with my arms, I quickly shed my tunic and my undershirt, leaving me nothing but my underwear to cover me, hoping that the piece of fabric was dry enough to provide enough warmth to keep her from freezing to death before I could tend to her wound. The cold air ripped through me like a thousand needles, although my own comfort was the last thing on my mind at the time.

I ripped the sleeve off of the left side of my Shirt and tied it around her head, securing it gently around the open wound. Carefully gathering my friend up in my arms, I draped the rest of the undershirt around her and held her close to me. My tunic was soaked through, and it would have done no good to me to place it back on my drenched shoulders, instead choosing to use the heat our bodies generated to keep us warm.

Crawling as close the walls as I could, I carefully positioned us so that we were able to retain as much body heat as possible, trapping the younger girl's' fragile form in my arms so as not to injure her further. Forming a protective hold on her, I let my senses go into overdrive, gathering every bit of information that I could about the girl in my arms.

The feel of her body pressed up against mine was familiar, and yet foreign all at the same time. Oftentimes we would find ourselves touching in some way, whether it be a simple glance of a hand or falling asleep under one of our favorite trees by the castle garden leaned up against each other or laying on top of one another. It was simply natural for us to have physical contact when we talked or played.

But this time was different. This wasn't a friendly hug, or even one she was even aware of. Because she was _so close_ to dying, the only way for her to survive this night was for is to huddle together in desperate need to survive. Sobs once again racked my body, and I buried my freezing hands and face into her damp clothing.

As I calmed my erratic weeping, I rested my head against her chest in an attempt to warm us further. A heartbeat. Not very strong but definitely beating. Listening to the sounds of the princess's heart beat was not a first for me, but instead of the strong, steady beat that was normal to the future ruler of Hyrule, the irregular beat sounded more like a requiem, instead of the poetic drumming of life.

The scent of blood and rain filled my senses as I began drifting off into unconsciousness. Trying to stay awake for as long as possible, I focused on this new distraction. Closing my eyes, I inhaled once again and separated the smells into known scents. Iron and other metals, blood. Salt, tears. Earthy tones, my under shirt. All of these smells mixed together in my brain, none distinctive to my shocked head. All except for one.

An almost unique aroma, of earth and sky, all at once. It lacked the flowery perfume that other women of the court drowned themselves in; instead, it gave a subtle glimpse at the beauty she tried to diminish in conversation when brought up.

I gave a shaky sigh as I thought about all that she did to lessen herself, to direct attention away from her as much as she could. She really was beautiful, more than words could ever describe. As I looked down to her now though, that elegant face was scaring me. Blood had soaked through the makeshift bandage around her head, and she was as pale as I'd ever seen her. I sighed. _Not the time for that. Not now._ I unwrapped the bindings and set them aside; taking the shirt and making it once again symmetrical by ripping the last arm off. While I reapplied her dressings I began to wonder about the future and what was to come. _If we survive long enough to see it._ The savage world had attempted to take the only thing I held dear from me, and I couldn't know if it would succeed just yet.

Looking back at the girl held tightly in my arms, I gazed at her features with soft eyes. If I'd have known that she would have destroyed me so completely, then I'd have stayed as far away as possible during the first few years of our friendship. I'd do anything for her, and I think she knows it too, although never takes advantage of it. No one should be able to have that much power over me; I've half-jokingly declared witchcraft . But I wouldn't trade her for the world. _Though I might trade the world for her, if given the chance._

My eyes roamed over her features once again, captivating me in the strangest of ways. Like her petite little nose, or the way her eyes slant at just the right angle, or the perfect curve of her lips. I ran my fingers gently through her brown locks as I contemplated the little lines of the contours of her jaw, lost in thought.

I barely noticed the minute movement of my upper body as I leaned in closer to her, my eyes locked on her lips. That is until a large piece of debris almost took off both of our heads. My eyes snapped back fully open as I stared at the large plank of wood that had splintered upon impact with the remains of the barn wall.

I berated myself as I readjusted my position with the princess, both physically and mentally, putting myself as far as I could while still able to do my job effectively. _This is not the time for your foolish and thoughtless actions, you complete idiot. She needs you, and you're abusing the fact that she's unconscious. Get your head together, for her sake._ I prepared myself for the long night still ahead, and put the thoughts of the past few minutes behind me as I pulled Zelda close, determined to keep her alive until morning.

AN/ Sorry guys! I know it's been a bit since I've last updated; life got in the way, and unfortunately that probably won't be the last time it will impede my progress on this story. I'm already forgoing homework to get this up today. I'll try to keep updating regularly, and I apologize in advance if this happens again, but sometimes I can't help it. The recommended story for this chapter is... umm... hang on just a moment-ah! that one'll do. A Xena: Warrior Princess story called Wild Heart by Bexteron. A beautiful AU of the show where Xena acts more like Tarzan than the conqueror of Greece. A great read for Xena/Gabrielle fans if you're interested.


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